To be credible, the opposition must be consistent, says analyst

 

Pakatan Harapan should compete ‘respectfully’ against BN and other opposition parties as it may need them to form the next government, says an analyst.

PETALING JAYA: The opposition must be consistent if it wants to be a “credible, trustable and respectable” outfit, a political analyst said.

And this includes refraining from making unrealistic promises, Wong Chin Huat said in a Facebook post tonight.

Pakatan Harapan, he said, should stop portraying themselves as saints, or painting their rivals, Barisan Nasional as scum and that voters could only trust the opposition coalition to “save Malaysia”.

Wong also called on PH to compete “respectfully” against BN and other opposition parties in the 15th general election. He said this was because it might have to join forces with others to form the next government.

Wong Chin Huat.

“If your attacks against opponents go overboard, and you want to ‘kiss and make up’ to form a government after the election, you would look completely hypocritical,” he said when suggesting ways PH could increase their chances of winning the next nationwide polls.

Wong also advised PH to come up with serious policy proposals if it wanted to set itself apart from its opponents.

He warned that no policy could satisfy all voters, and suggested that PH should come up with public policies that would benefit most of the voters it wanted to court.

By doing so, it can negotiate compromises on policy concessions when it becomes part of the next government without looking unprincipled, Wong said.

“None of the above is rocket science. GE15 is not a foregone conclusion if opposition politicians can recognise the changes in our politics.”

PH recently suffered a series of defeats at state elections held in Sarawak, Johor, and Melaka.

Last month, PKR vice-president Rafizi Ramli said PH should be realistic about the coalition’s chances at the next general election, adding it would be better for the coalition to remain in opposition “with dignity”.

PKR’s Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar, meanwhile, said PH would need at least 10 more years or two general elections before it could retake the federal government. - FMT